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SEEKING SECOND SEED

The Chargers have clinched the AFC West and a home playoff game. But whether that game is played the weekend of Jan. 9-10 or Jan. 16-17 is undecided. In order to secure the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye, the Chargers must:

It began 2-3, with the Chargers getting a good look at the Broncos’ wagging tails. It began with Norv Turner — San Diego’s real Santa Claus — being led up the steps by the hangman to a noose fashioned by angry villagers who certainly never carried a torch for him.

What exactly happened after that to make this the most improbable run since Phidippides negotiated the first marathon is for Rhodes scholars to decipher — and there are none nearby at the moment (I am writing this in a press box, understand).

That Greek kid, by the way, died after his long run. But the Chargers? They’re still kicking after their ridiculous, relentless, somewhat inspiring jaunt, still walking around, still very much among the dwindling number of living NFL teams.

Pushed yesterday by one of the loudest Qualcomm Stadium crowds since Steve Garvey’s home run, the Chargers not only sit atop the AFC West after some 11th-hour dramatics to beat Cincinnati (Bungles no more) 27-24, but they’ve now captured their division for the fourth year in a row. They’ve taken it five of the past six seasons, unprecedented in this town — be it Coryell, Gillman, or anyone else.

They’re 11-3, winners of nine straight. Many of their successes — including yesterday’s — have not come against The League’s cold cuts. And while everyone seems to have an opinion as to why it has come to this in this particular year, with this particular team’s never-ending string of injury problems and roster moves, answers aren’t easy, not for a C student like me.

They have played better than they did in September. How’s that? Well, that still isn’t enough.

Santa Norv now is 12-0 in his Decembers as the club’s head coach. His quarterback, Philip Rivers, is 17-0 as a starter in his Decembers, an NFL record. It’s a stunning achievement.

In the curious case of 2009, however, it goes beyond December and is more impressive than last year’s run from 4-8 to division champion, because in 2008 Denver collapsed like a bad soufflé. This year, they’ve concocted their own chances.

“The biggest concern was where we were sitting,” said receiver Vincent Jackson, who had a big day. “You try not to look outside the window in front of you, but the Broncos were 6-0. Who expected that? We were sitting there at 2-3. We had a team meeting, just players only, and we said it’s gut-check time.”

Cliché time. One win, one practice at a time. But, as Jackson put it: “Everybody bought into it. It’s been the key to our success.”

This is not just December’s team. The Chargers haven’t lost since Denver beat them here Oct. 19, and since they’ve beaten five teams — the Giants, Broncos, Eagles, Cowboys and Bengals — that still have winning records.

Yesterday’s game probably wouldn’t have been close had a Rivers pass not slipped through tight end Antonio Gates’ mitts and into the arms of Bengals linebacker Keith Rivers. San Diego had the ball and a 24-13 lead early in the fourth quarter. But, in a way, it gave us yet another opportunity to see what this team is made of when the room is closing in.

After Gates’ miscue — he had been brilliant to that point — the visitors scored a touchdown and two-point conversion to cut the lead to 3. The Bengals kicked a field goal to tie it with 54 seconds remaining. The Chargers were out of timeouts. Overtime loomed.

Wanting to go home early, Rivers had other ideas. He hit back Darren Sproles for 11 yards. He found Jackson for 20 more to the Cincinnati 49. With 12 seconds left, the Bengals didn’t guard the sideline for some stupid reason and Rivers hit wideout Malcom Floyd, who went out of bounds at the Cincy 34 with 8 seconds to play.

All that was left was for Nate Kaeding to make a 52-yard field goal. Cake.

They even lost a mandatory 10 seconds on that drive when center Scott Mruczkowski went down with an ankle injury.

But that’s how these Chargers are. They’re resilient, opportunistic, often smart and fortunate. So they’re survivors.

As far as I’m concerned, what they’ve accomplished this year, given the injuries to real good players and the week-to-week changes to the starting lineup, is one of the remarkable achievements in the 50-year history of the franchise. These are some tough guys.

“It’s been special from the fact that we’ve used so many guys,” said tailback LaDainian Tomlinson, who rushed 16 times for 59 yards and became more involved in the passing game, catching four Rivers tosses for 58 yards. “Guys going down, guys on IR, guys missing games and guys stepping in.

“I remember when we first started training camp, Norv said: ‘We’re going to need all of you.’ You listen to that and you never think he’s talking about me, but he’s talking about everybody, and it’s proven to be true.”

This kind of stuff can playoff-harden a team.

“We need these types of games — tough games, close games, games with a lot of adversity,” LT said. “It brings out the best in you … You won’t panic at all.”